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After achieving six consecutive triumphs from six matches, zero goals allowed and tournament placement secured with two group games to spare, England manager Thomas Tuchel can argue he has got all of his big qualifying decisions correct.

Nevertheless, in the preparation for Thursday's home game against Serbia, he sparked a debate when he claimed that three of the nation's top talents - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - struggle to perform in the equivalent formation.

"At the moment, if we stick with the system, they are unable to feature.

"They can but not with current tactics, not preserving harmony that we developed and not within the framework that comes also with wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We currently utilize with defensive, central, attacking midfielders and striker."

From guaranteed positions to competitive roles

Foden and Bellingham have been deployed on the flanks for England in the past, but Tuchel's selections suggest that the Barcelona loanee and Bukayo Saka are his primary selections on the left and right flank respectively.

So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane coexist in the lineup?

Gareth Southgate certainly thought so.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane were selected for each England's seven fixtures at Euro 2024 in Germany, where Southgate's side lost to Spain in the final.

In the 16 games the three have featured together, England have secured 10 victories, tied three matches and been defeated three times, registering 36 scores and letting in 14 strikes.

Strategic view: Versatile Foden offers solutions

Tuchel has utilized a 4-2-3-1 formation that changes shape when England attack.

The young midfielder has been the main number 10 because of his excellent dribbling, strike quality and capacity to penetrate the area when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has mentioned preferring dedicated wide players. Saka and Gordon play out wide weekly and can maintain possession effectively, take their full-back on, and enter the area to finish.

Behind this front four, Tuchel utilizes two central midfielders consisting of one defensively strict player and another with greater freedom to join the forward movement.

Potential configurations for England's stars

Foden and Bellingham would be competing with other creative midfielders for the creative hub, with Kane likely to start up front.

Foden could feature as the main forward, which potentially could permit both Bellingham and Foden to operate without the captain.

There is a potential solution all three could coexist effectively and Tuchel suggested it this week.

"For Man City, he operates similarly to a box-to-box or creative role, so potentially in future we consider him as a box-to-box player," he said.

Foden has been used in a more all-purpose midfield role this season.

That has permitted him to contribute from midfield and could categorize him as the advanced playmaker, next to a more defensive number six.

This would then enable Bellingham to operate as the number 10 and Kane as the striker.

Regardless of if Tuchel chooses to configure the team like this at the World Cup, what seems encouraging is his readiness to exclude star names in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.